A significant player in the 3D-printed firearms world has been arrested on charges of violating the National Firearms Act of 1934 (NFA) and the Hughes Amendment of the Gun Owners Protection Act (GOPA).
According to a criminal complaint filed in a New York federal court on October 17, Peter Celentano, who went by the online moniker Freeman, was arrested for an illegal possession of a machinegun charge. On September 29, The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), along with local police, executed a search warrant on the 35-year-old man’s Bergen, NY home. Federal authorities recovered two 3D printers, unserialized pistol frames, a jig used to finish 80% AR15 receivers, and various other tools that could be used for gunsmithing. In a bathroom closet, the agents found what they claimed to be two 3D-printed machinegun conversion devices.
The authorities believed the man had moved other items from his home, where he lived with his wife and her child. Unbeknownst to Celentano, the ATF had planted a GPS tracker on his vehicle to track his movements. Authorities noticed he made a 40-minute stop at a property in Lyndonville, NY. The ATF contacted the property owner, who gave the ATF agents and local law enforcement permission to search the property for evidence against Celentano.
The agents found an unlocked RV on the property. The agents searched the vehicle and found two totes with yellow tops. The property’s owner claimed to have no knowledge of it and claimed that he didn’t permit anyone to store anything at that location. Police also found a shed with even more containers.
While law enforcement was searching the property for evidence, they received a call from the property owner’s son. The son informed police that Celentano was storing items at his Medina, NY, apartment. Police went to retrieve the items. Mr. Celentano’s friend told police that he knew that Celentano was in possession of machineguns and 3D-printed firearms. The man stated that Celentano was storing items there because he was in the process of moving. Inside the padlocked totes, police found two 3D printers, two plate carriers, and over 20 3D-printed pistol frames. According to the man, Celentano told him the containers contained expensive camera equipment.
When the ATF opened the other containers, they found multiple AR-15 style receivers with a third hole drilled. According to the ATF, the third hole allows for installing an automatic sear. The ATF considers these receivers to be machineguns because of the third hole. The ATF says the total number of AR15 receivers with the third hole drilled out was 59. The resident of the apartment said that Celentano would test out firearms, including machineguns, at the Lyndonville property.
During the interview with the Lyndonville property owner, the man stated that he disposed of some firearms and parts into the Erie Canal. The NYSP SORT dive team recovered a cardboard box from the water that contained ten AR-style receivers, one unserialized handgun, magazines, and other gun parts. The ATF checked Celentano’s name against the NFA registry and found no items registered to the defendant.
Celentano asked for a bond from the court while awaiting trial, but the government argued that he posed a threat. The government presented social media posts from X (formerly Twitter) to establish the threat they believed Celentano was to law enforcement. One post said to train a Wendigo to fight federal agents. A Wendigo is a mythical Native American creature. Another post by Celentano said that “AR-15s are for shooting cops and anyone else who attempts to step on [our] liberty.” The judge would deny the bond, remanding the man into custody.
The authorities were tipped off to Celentano’s real identity by an anonymous call. No one has solid proof of who turned the man in to authorities. Celentano was also involved with the Gatalog. The Gatalog is a 3D printing website surrounding the 3D printing of firearms. The Gatalog uses Rocket Chat to communicate with its developers. AmmoLand News verified through our sources that the ATF has access to the Gatalog’s Rocket Chat. This includes items that are currently in beta.
There has also been talk about violations of export controls of arms. No one has been charged for those violations. This angle is just one that the federal authorities are looking at as a possible way to curb the dissemination of 3D-printed files across the internet.
About John Crump
Mr. Crump is an NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. John has written about firearms, interviewed people from all walks of life, and on the Constitution. John lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons, follow him on X at @crumpyss, or at www.crumpy.com.
Have you ever read an article and thought; “surely there’s more.” Well, maybe not. As luck would have it, this morning I read an article about DEA, FBI gun parts slated for destruction found in, what they termed “a ghost gun.” When we read this article, we have 59 lowers with an extra hole. Does the ATF get to decide where the extra hole location constitutes auto readiness? If he wants to turn his stuff into swiss cheese, that’s up to him. Another tell is, they put a tracker on his car…obviously this is before raiding his house and based… Read more »
If your doing illegal stuff its self defeating to involve others in your crimes and to spread your ideas and ideology across the internet. The minders are scouring the web for everything gun and explosives related and containing anti government subversive posts. Eventually you will be tracked, survielled and caught
That is unless your a Jihadist the Communist Biden Regime has escorted into the US and has provided you a cover, weapons, food and shelter. Then you will be left alone to carry out mass murder and destruction. Its the Biden/Harris way.
Why does the receiver having the third hole make it illegal? Mere possession of an autosear is illegal because that’s the part they consider to be a machine gun. Having a hole with no autosear doesn’t make anything function as a machine gun…..
The story is about some guy 3D printing firearm parts..
The lead picture shows a Ghost Gunner desktop CNC mill.
They both can be used to make a firearm at home, but other than that I don’t see the connection.
Say no to Nazi’s.
Well? It’s like this. Though the government stomps on our rights regarding what we can and cannot have, we know that AR’s with a 3rd hole is against the law, we know that home made firearms to be sold to others without a serial number is against the law. He created his own dilemma and the verbiage he used about law enforcement didn’t help his case one bit. He could have had a tax stamp for the fully autos if they fell within the dates of manufacture which I feel should be changed and if we want a machine gun… Read more »